Force graduated from high school in Gonzales, La., the hometown of one of this year's World Series teams.

“This is our third time coming to the Series. It’s the first time we’ve gotten to be here for a whole game,” she said.

Force's daughter, Emaleigh, proudly held up a handmade sign Friday to cheer on the Gonzales Wombats, who won their game against Petaluma, Calif.

An added connection

This past weekend, Laura’s 20th high school reunion was set to be held in Louisiana. She was looking forward to seeing a friend with whom she graduated.

“She and I both are from Ascension Parish,” said Laura.

Then, Laura found out her friend would also be at the Legion games.

“We knew we’d be going to the reunion,” said her husband, Kevin. “Then she (Laura) got a text from her friend who said that her son’s baseball team had just won their regionals.”

That team was Gonzalez, La. Her friend’s son plays shortstop on the team.

Big-time hospitality

Although the Force family lives in Texas, they said they love coming to Shelby each year.

“We’ve been treated very well. We love uptown Shelby,” said Laura.

So far, Laura and her children have visited the Dover YMCA and Boiling Springs YMCA pools, as well as the Shelby City Park to ride the rotary train.

Emaleigh said her favorite part of Shelby is visiting Rollover Pets to see the animals. The family has also visited Smoke on the Square and Fireside Books and Gifts. They plan to check out other uptown restaurants while they're in town. Laura said they really enjoy the atmosphere and people of Shelby.

“My favorite thing about Shelby is the big-time hospitality in a small place,” she said.